These are truly great cupcakes. I recently bought the Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery cookbook by Martha Swift and Lisa Thomas (you can get it on Amazon.co.uk). It contains recipes of the delights to be found in their bakery shops in London. It is great. I have unfortunately never visited the bakery. Yet. I say yet as I am definitely going to try to call in the next time I’m in London. I made a big batch of these cupcakes and the Truly Terrific Double Chocolate Cupcakes to bring in to college and they disappeared fast! The book also gives a step-by-step guide to icing cupcakes. I just used a piping bag to ice these cupcakes. My attempt to swirl the perfect frosting is for another day.
Some pics after the cut, but no recipe. You need to buy the book for that 
Martha and Lisa emphasise the importance of good quality ingredients. Cupcakes aren’t rocket science, and all recipes use the same collection of ingredients (albeit in varying ratios), so you need to be careful choosing the ingredients you use. Fresh free-range eggs. A brand of flour you get consistently good results from. Good quality vanilla extract.
Use a hand mixer or stand mixer and pay attention to the consistency of the mixture…..
Line a cupcake tin with paper liners. Or use silicon moulds if you prefer.
Watch the clock when the cupcakes are in the oven. A skewer inserted in the centre of a cupcake should come out clean when they are done.
Find the recipe for the perfect frosting (hint: it’s in the same book!). Halve the amounts as you are sure you won’t need that much frosting. Try to make the last few look cute even though you’re pretty much scraping out the piping bag.
Gather together all the cupcakes and display nicely. Watch your display be ignored by hungry office mates.
Tah Dah!
And Happy St Patrick’s Day to everyone (I’m a bit late I know….)
